Page 76 of Ruthless Heir

Fuck. I was jumping the gun.

“Does this weigh on your decision for her proposal?” Kir asked, circling back to the main topic of discussion, his anger still visible on his face.

“No. I keep business and personal separate.”

Rey grunted, telling me he thought I was full of shit.

“Is that a yes, then?” Nik probed.

“You realize we are letting her move us around like one of her chess pieces? Hopefully, it won’t bite us in the ass.”

“Did you forget, chess is a Solon agent’s favorite game, and Devani is the best? The objective is to protect the king.” Rey smiled as he twisted his wedding band. “Lilly shot me to keep me safe. Imagine what your queen would do if things didn’t go according to plan.”

I sighed and moved toward the door. “At least something very rare will come out of this deal.”

“What’s that?” Kir asked.

I smiled. “Not only will the Queen of Diamonds owe me a favor, so will the Director of Solon North America.”

“Wouldn’t we owe her for selling to us?” Kir studied me.

“No. To keep her name out of all actions against the Circle requires time and money. What we want is out in the open. Her activities require discretion. Extra precautions come at a price. And a queen likes to accrue debts, not incur them.”

“And let me guess, you plan to collect.”

“Of course.”

* * *

A little beforeseven in the evening, I stepped out of my car and onto the streets of a neighborhood I’d despised as a child. Here, I’d spent the first fourteen years of my life. This was where Nik, Kir, Rey, and I ran around, making nuisances of ourselves. The place where we’d bonded with the young Danika and created our own makeshift family to replace the ones we’d lost.

I inclined my head to a group of kids who checked me out from head to toe. Suspicion lit their eyes exactly as I’d watched Arin the first time I saw him. I couldn’t understand why some rich fucker with bodyguards would enter the neighborhood.

Now, I was the rich fucker walking the same streets.

I smiled inside and thought of how Arin would have laughed his ass off.

Except these kids wouldn’t dare rob me. Well, most of them. After Nik, Kir, Rey, and I started making Arin’s vision a reality, we’d come back to help everyone who wanted it. From jobs to revitalizing the neighborhood to a safe place to live.

Though there were still those who refused to take anything from the former gang kids.

I made my way into a tall, renovated brick apartment building and up four flights of stairs to an apartment guarded by four King Holdings security members.

They opened the door, and I walked inside. On a far sofa sat a couple I knew every minute detail about.

Kala and Nimesh Barot.

The asshole’s butler and head chef.

Fear flashed over their faces as I came into view, making me want to sigh. What the fuck had Shah done to them in his house?

Then I thought of how things had gone down in the meeting this afternoon.

When Shah had arrived with Joshi and five of his partners, he thought he’d get to charm his way into a renegotiation of loans.

Then when he saw us sitting on the other side of the table, I almost thought his head would explode right then and there.

Now the King brothers not only controlled all of his debts incurred before Jayna had taken over his finances, but also the outstanding loans and bonds for the new ventures he’d created. There was no Shah International 2.0 for him.

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